Not Applicable.
Not Applicable.
This invention relates to electronic gaming apparatuses and more particularly to interactive electronic amusement apparatuses.
Electronic amusement apparatuses with visual or audiovisual displays are commercially available in many formats, ranging from the dedicated platforms of Sony [e.g.; PlayStation 2, PlayStation 1, Sony Windows CE Handheld, Sony VAIO laptop computer], Nintendo [e.g., Nintendo 64, Gameboy, Color Gameboy, etc.], Sega [e.g.; Dreamcast, Genesis, and handheld games such as the Game Gear which are linkable together], as well as open platform environments such as Windows, Macintosh, Windows CE, Unix, Linux, PALM, Sony Playstation 2, Microsoft X-Box, etc. Nintendo 64, Gameboy, Color Gameboy, etc.], Sega [e.g.; Dreamcast, Genesis, and handheld games such as the Game Gear which are linkable together], as well as open platform environments such as Windows, Macintosh, Windows CE, Unix, Linux, PALM, Sony Playstation 2, Microsoft X-Box, etc.
In the handheld and transportable area, the entries include the dedicated handheld games [e.g.: Nintendo Gameboy, Nintendo color Gameboy, SNK NeoGeo, Windows CE handhelds and compatibles, including those from Sony, NEC, Hewlett Packard, and Palm Pilot and compatibles, etc.]
In accordance with the teaching of one of present applicant""s prior U.S. Patent ""509, video games that can stand alone, or play as a linked video game apparatus in a distributed video game network are taught, and practiced in the industry many years subsequent to the issuance of the ""509 patent, such as in products like the Nintendo Gameboy with links, the Sega Gamegear, and intranet, and internet networked environments.
In accordance with another aspect of the existing amusement gaming technology, user interaction with the video game is restricted to one of a set of defined paradigms. For example, if the user is playing in a game, then that user must elect to play stand-alone or networked, multiple user, and, furthermore, the interaction rules in either case are linear and fixed. That is, in an action game, or role playing game, or sports game, or whatever game, the user is playing in accordance with a defined set of game rules for either the single player stand-alone mode, wherein the only opponent is the computer, or in the multiple player networked player game mode, where each of the user""s interactions causes responses in accordance with a fixed set of defined rules, and where further the user""s conduct and results are visceral, that is, you win, you lose, you gain a possession, you lose a physical possession such as a sword or power pill, and you use up some amount of time, energy, points, etc. in the process of playing the game, which determines how long you""re allowed to play the game.
It would be desirable to have an electronic gaming apparatus based on a visual display which provides multi-variable based interaction and behavior, and where the interactivity and networking aspects are enhanced to provide both more complex user-game interaction based on user behavior and input to the game, but to further provide for a multi-variable based inter-electronic gamecard apparatus in an interaction. However, none of the prior art systems are compatible, or can provide for either the physical communications hardware and software, or the software game design methodology or logic necessary to provide these features.
Another significant drawback of present-day games is that the characteristics of the activity (that is, the play) are established by the programming of the game, and therefore remain the same. While a particular game may have many distinct levels of difficulty, the characteristic responses within any one level are constant and unvarying. Therefore, once a player has mastered the highest level in the game, he usually loses interest quickly, as the challenge is no longer present.
An electronic trading card apparatus is comprised of a processing subsystem, a user input apparatus and a display. The processing subsystem has a processing logic section, memory for storing behavior rules, and a communications interface for interacting with other ones of the electronic trading card apparatus. The user input apparatus is for use by a player. The processing subsystem provides programmed functionality which in combination form a persona responsive to the behavior rules, the user input apparatus and the communications interface. The display provides for a display presentation to the player responsive to the persona formed by the processing subsystem.
An interactive amusement device exhibits a behavior, for use by a player in a system of a plurality of the amusement devices. Each amusement device is comprised of a feature controller, a communications interface, logic and a display. The feature controller selects from a defined set of features to define an amusement device persona, wherein each device has a separate persona that is initially set to an initial family value. The persona is comprised of several elements, with each of the elements comprising several variables, wherein each said variable has an initial value.
The communications interface communicates with other ones of the amusement devices. The user interface communicates with the player. The logic for determining behavior in response to at least one of communications from other ones of the devices and from the player. The display for providing a presentation of the behavior responsive to the respective amusement device persona.
In one embodiment, the display includes structural elements capable of physical mechanical motion. The display can also provide a visual and/or an audible presentation. In a preferred embodiment, the associated initial values are reassigned a unique value upon each initialization of the device. In a networked embodiment, a plurality of the devices are associated as members of a same family, wherein the members of the same family have the same initial family values. In a preferred embodiment for each device, members of the same family are further characterized in that the initial family value is modified by a factor to create a unique persona.
Thereafter, the behavior of the device is modified responsive to communications with at least one of the other ones of the devices.
In one embodiment, the feature controller is responsive to voice commands from the player to define the card persona. In one embodiment, the communications interface is an acoustic interface, which can provide inter-device audio communication within human range of hearing. The acoustic interface can also selectively further provide for response to human voice commands.
In one embodiment the device is further comprised of an interface to a control apparatus for providing means for the player to interface with the device. The interface to the control apparatus provides, inter alia, for player modification of the device persona, and/or for player selection of a game action. In one embodiment, the device is further comprised of a filter for selectively filtering communications received from the other ones of the amusement devices.
In an alternate embodiment, the device can provide means for receiving communications from a first one of the other ones of the devices and for forwarding the communications to a second one of the other ones of the devices. In the alternate embodiment the device can further comprise a filter for selectively filtering the communications from the first one of the other ones of the devices prior to forwarding to the second one of the other ones of the devices.
In a preferred embodiment, the feature controller is responsive to a defined set of rules for selecting from the defined set of features. The feature controller can alternately be programmed to define the rules, and/or the rules can be at least in part learned from the player use of the device.
In one embodiment, two or more of the devices can provide means for exchanging the persona for the device with ad for the persona of one of the other ones of the devices. As described in greater detail hereinafter, the persona is comprised of personality, possessions, appearance and society. Personality can be comprised of a plurality of variables each having an associated starting value that is initially assigned based upon a family value and a pseudo-random individual family member value, wherein the values of the variables are further modified thereafter responsive to experiences representative of at least one of communications with other ones of the devices and with the player, wherein the range of change of the values is limited to a defined set of thresholds.
Possessions (and/or appearance) can be comprised of a plurality of variables each of which has an initial value which is thereafter continually modified responsive to at least one of the communications with at least one of the other devices and the player. The initial value for the variables for the possessions can be a fixed value, a random number, assigned at manufacture and/or assigned upon initialization. Society can be comprised of a plurality of variables that have no initial value, but are defined by the interaction that each of the devices undergoes with at least one of other ones of the devices and with the player. In a preferred embodiment, the behavior is in part exhibited as changes to the appearance of the device. The initial value of each of the variables is selectively further modified by an additional factor, resulting in a unique persona for the device. In a preferred embodiment, the device as in claim 1, wherein selected ones of the variables are further modified responsive to experience comprising communications and interaction of the respective device with at least one other one of the devices and the player.
The variables for personality can be further comprised of at least one element of a family name, an individual name, a character, a caste, a rank, aggressiveness, garrulousness, self-centeredness, altruism, openness, truthfulness, strength, intelligence, amenability, hostility, gender, sexual orientation, sexual drive, sexual availability, and sexual monogamy. The variables for the possessions can be comprised of elements of wealth, rank, health, wisdom, and sex. The variables for the appearance can be comprised of elements of at least one of character caste, character rank, gender, beauty, and stature.
The variables for the society can be comprised of elements of other ones of the devices which share a common value of one of the variables with the respective device, and in communication with the respective device, a player in communication with the respective device, and communication with other ones of the devices which do not share a common value of one of the variables with the respective device.
In one embodiment, at least two selected ones of the devices interact in a role-playing game responsive to the logic which is responsive to stored game rules and data. In an alternate embodiment, the player can masquerade as a device, substituting for defined game rules and data to appear as a selected one of the devices in the role-playing game. The play of the role-playing game is comprised of a series of conversation interactions among the selected ones of the devices.
In a preferred embodiment, wherein the interaction among the selected ones of the devices occurs in a hierarchical order directly based on relative proximity of the selected devices to one another. The conversation interactions can be comprised of an introductory conversation from a first one of the devices and a reply response providing information on the variables of the persona of the second one of the devices.
In one embodiment, the first one of the devices communicates via the second one of the devices to indirectly communicate with a third one of the devices.
In a further embodiment, the second one of the devices provides an additional response of an introductory conversation to the first one of the devices, wherein the first one of the devices responds to the additional response of the introductory conversation by providing an additional reply response to the second one of the devices. The reply response results in a transfer of at least a portion of the value of a selected one of the variables from the second one of the devices to the first one of the devices.
The transfer can alternatively result in a change to the value of the respective variables of both devices in the transfer, or only result in a change to the value of the respective variable in only one of the devices in the transfer. The transfer of the value for the respective variable is governed by predefined rules associated with the respective variable. Each device can communicate with at least one of the players and at least another one of the devices. The device communicates at any given time with only one of the other ones of the devices. Each device can provide an active game with an associated display. The active game is divided into phases comprising a discovery phase and an active play phase.
A method of communicating is provided amongst a network of networked computing entities to provide feedback to a user representative of a group social behavior comprising and providing a uniform data structure for each said computing entity which defines group social behavior simulation and the data structure comprising interaction rules and initial conditions. The interaction rules are comprised of fixed and variable elements. The initial conditions are comprised of fixed, variable and random elementsxe2x80x94modifying the variable elements of the interaction rules and the initial conditions responsive to interaction of the networked computing entities and exhibiting feedback of the group social behavior simulation to the user of at least one of the computing entities.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a game that has ever-changing characteristics, in addition to being easily reprogrammed by the user/player.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a multi-variable interactive electronic game apparatus.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide for a new and novel intergaming apparatus communications architecture, protocol, and implementations, to facilitate interamusement gaming apparatus communication.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide the methodology and structure for controlling and managing visual display generation for each of the electronic gaming apparatus based on the xe2x80x9cpersonaxe2x80x9d of the particular respective gaming apparatus, [which xe2x80x9cpersonaxe2x80x9d is itself a multi-variable aspect], but is also responsive to the xe2x80x9cpersonaexe2x80x9d of other nearby game apparatus that may be within communications range of the first game apparatus [this interaction is also multi-variabled, for instance, depending on the relative distance from the particular game apparatus to the specific nearby game apparatus, the persona of the specific apparatus and the status of the interaction activity being communicated with the particular game apparatus and the other specific game apparatus].
It is a further object to provide a computing entity (or electronic gaming apparatus) which exhibits the personae and can be utilized for general or specific group social behavior simulations and feedback.
These and other aspects and attributes of the present invention will be discussed with reference to the following drawings and accompanying specification.